


Cast Her Eyes

by LaughingHollow (sugoi)



Series: The Pale Prince [4]
Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Character Study, Drama, Gen, Magic, Not Beta Read, PV is aggresso, Partial Mind Control, References to Depression, Side Story
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-01-17
Packaged: 2021-03-03 18:42:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24550261
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sugoi/pseuds/LaughingHollow
Summary: The god's eyes widened with shock, as what just happened registered in the wyrm's mind, the essences of the seal was of his own, or at least identical enough that there was no doubt it was of his kin, the complex incantations engraved within the aggressive seal matched that of the pure vessel...
Relationships: Hornet & The Pale King (Hollow Knight)
Series: The Pale Prince [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1601743
Comments: 8
Kudos: 53





	1. Dying Leaves & Withered Bonds

**Author's Note:**

> Motivation took a dip, but i think i still got this!
> 
> Self indulgent mess of a angsty wyrm, at odds with himself and his actions that lead them all to this mess.
> 
> You might not understand everything happening in the last chapter if you don't read Pale ore 83

Footsteps echoed with each of the wrym's paces, obnoxiously loud sounding, echoing off each and every one of the marble stone pillars, only to bounce back at him.

The palace halls were too silent, but this had become a constance since the white lady's departure, it seemed as if she had taken more then the odd half of the pale wyrm's soul with her.

Many of the her servants had left post or followed their lady, the plant life that had once creeped across the walls, and filled the palace's many hallways with the sweet scent of flourishing flora had receded, left unattended and without the love and devotion of his lady, neglected they quickly withered and died, littering the pale palace in dying and wilted roots and crippled leaves and petals.

The once lively palace, now empty and stagnant, overgrown with dead roots and debris the king had no heart to remove himself.

It was as if his lady was still weeping, her tears of despair a settling weight alongside the silent mourning the king was staving off.

It was like she were unprepared for what she already knew had to be done...even though they had years to prepare for this, yet dare he blame her?

When he, himself was moments from backing away on his plan, dooming his kingdom in a single act of selfishness cowardice for a child that was already dead?

No, Of course not.

But even if the vessel was not their child anymore, the creature had stubbornly held onto their most potent of features, it wore the beautiful face of it's mother, it moved with the very essence of her grace even in battle, and although taller and much leaner, they took the elegant stature of it's father, inherited his commanding air that had bugs cowering in fear of the empty vessel, they were swift and relentless, they learned fast and quickly became a powerful constant within the palace.

They were perfect in every way that would have had any parent raise their heads with pride, there was no question whether or not it would have made the ideal heir had it not previously been stripped of its mortality.

The truth was painfully obvious.

But that would never be and certainly not now, the vessel was gone, forever the keeper of that wretched old light, he himself sacrificed them to thus cause.

There was none to blame but him, and his lady could not so much as bare the sight of the wyrm in absence of what was once the shell of her child.

Her empty blue eyes hardly glanced his way after he returned from the vessel's sealing, it was like he accidentally had sealed apart of her with the creature in their prison of void.

In the night following she fled the white palace, she spared him no words, with little warning but a note, a note admitting she could not bare the presence of him, or herself for that matter, he did not need to read the rest to know she would not take kindly to his visits, but he read the letter in its entirety anyways, out of respect for his lady.

As much as he hated the truth, He didn't blame her, not really, in a world full of such contrasting constants, to experience freedom there was always going to be the price of pain, it was the same words he explained to the curious moths so many years ago..those words had taken to haunting him lately, mocking his every step through his lonely personal corridors.

Loneliness pried at the wyrm's chest and chipped away at his resolve, every shadow stalked him like the ghost of his child, the child he himself had abandoned to death, long before they had any say in the matter.

Going to the city of tears was so unbearable, the wyrm outright refused to go, the raindrops reminded him of the sad eyes of his root, betrayed by a fate they both knew they were helpless to fight.

The wyrm found himself wishing for a world where all was right, there would be no pain, and his root would have her children, as many as she pleased.

They would be loud and boisterous, constant reckless disappointments but he would have loved them, they would have had to decide one to name heir...it would be perfect.

His heart would crumple as he remembered, those final days leading up to the hollow knight's sealing, the melancholy of the palace, even the knight themselves seemed to act unnaturally off, the white lady had holed Herself up in her chambers refusing to see anyone.

It was like their victory over the old light was a just a elaborate facade, It wasn't fair!

In a fit of rage he had dismissed all of the royal servants, retainers, even his five Knights were to stay away unless absolutely necessary.

With the threat of infection ceased, he saw little reason to be sensible on the matter, he wanted to be alone, and so he would have his solitude.

No one questioned his tantrums, however, not all adhered to his demands either.

It wasn't long before he realized there was still retainers haunting the halls, foolishly hiding as if a once sightless higher being could not sense life in his territory from more then a mile away.

It was almost comical the lengths the silly bugs threw themselves through to avoid his line of sight, did they not think he realized who it was who placed food outside his chamber's door when ever he wasn't looking? 

He most certainly had accidentally stepped on it enough times to warrant they reconsider its placement, and began leaving it beside his door instead...

Surly they couldn't really have thought hiding behind a simple curtain drape would be a sufficient hiding place..?

Never had the pale wyrm questioned his retainers competence...but staring at the thin pale legs standing motionless behind the drapes...

The pale king began to have his doubts on their sanity.

Despite his initial displeasure at the small group of bugs blatant disobedience, the king also found himself thankful, as elusive as they were, or at least attempted to be, they were still there, they had not abandoned him, even when he gave them order to.

Truly he did not want to be alone, he he felt like his heart was shattering under the weight of recent events, the pain was too much, at the time he wasn't sound of mind and acted out recklessly, pushing those around him back the moment he felt vulnerable.

It was in a wyrm's nature to be predatory and come expect the same predation from others when vulnerable, to become defensive the moment they felt weakened, despite his root's insistence that he needn't feel that way amongst his court, in her absence he had done just that...

Only to regret it instantly, but words had power and not all can be taken back, a cruel truth the pale king was all too aware of.

With a huff, the pale king slowly made his way toward one of his tutoring studies, wandering aimlessly lamenting on events unable to be rectified would never get anything done!

But as his steps through the half dusted halls brought him closer to his destination, he slowly realized why he had been avoiding the study for so long, even if it was subconsciously...

Stationed on each side of the door, were two motionless beings, kingsmoulds guarding his private corridors, just as he had ordered them to weeks prior.

Large void beings, clad in the pristine white and reflecting armour, like shadows they mindlessly waited for his command, content to stand there for eternity had he ordered it so.

The vessel was just as much void as they, but never seemed to be quite so dependent as they, though it was hard to explain what set the vessel aside from the lesser void creatures.

But be it guilt or paranoia, the two creatures seemed off, the way the void rippled in their armored casting, it was with an angry seething silence, perhaps he was just hyper aware of the way their dead white eyes tracked his movements, had they always looked so predatory?

It was a look he had seen rarely on the pure vessel in battle, a fleeting look a predator gives it's cornered prey, when trying to figure out the most effective method to kill it.

But unlike the vessel's presence these king's moulds, were not hollowed out bearings wearing the mask of familiarity, these creatures were the purest form of void, dredged up from the abyss and harnessed with magic and shell.

Had they not been binded to his will what would they have done to him in the vessel's absence?

It was apparent void responded to other void beings differently, they would not challenge the vessel, even when the vessel par his orders attacked and destroyed them.

It was a phenomenon not even the wyrm understood, and refused to delve to deeply into, in fear that he didn't understand the void as much as he had once thought he had.

Despite his hesitance, he approached the duo commanding them to step aside, an order they followed much to the wyrm's relief, but still he was hyper aware of the delay it took them to comply, were their movement always so sluggish?

Quickly he hurried inside, letting out a relieved sigh as he pushed the doors safely closed behind him, neither mould made action to follow him, but he still felt his pulse thumping against his shell.

He knew he was being foolish, it was loneliness and stress getting to him, he just needed to keep himself busy and keep his head on straight, things would get better!

They always did...

The study was small but comfortable, filled with many Scrolls and expensive tablets, a huge map of Hallownest hung on the wall forgotten under sheets of dust, well of course it was dusty he doubted the servants dare attempt to pass the moulds standing guard, he would need to tidy it up a bit before that afternoon.

Yes, something to do, it would take his mind off of dark matters and help him keep active, the wyrm grabbed a old rag, and quickly set to work dusting off important footnotes, and documentations of past events relevant to Hallownest's history.

He opened the crystal pane windows to let out the excess dust, the air was refreshing and cool, while the sky dim, murky and sunless, it would never rise in Hallownest again, not so long as the vessel binds the furious light, but it would have to do.

Eventually the room was in a tidier state then that morning, much more presentable the wyrm thought with a huff, allowing a moment to feel proud of himself, and his achievements as he paused to rest.

Lack of sleep was nipping at his heels, making the wyrm truly resent his sleepless nights, fatigue was starting to become a rather boisterous and unwelcoming companion.

But at least the desks were shiny, the floor swept clean from dust and debris, he even attempted to clean the map, as much as his unfortunately petite height allowed, He had just managed to clean and sort all the bookshelves in preparation for his pupils arrival, when he realized it was already afternoon.

It wouldn't be long before she arrived, the wrym couldn't help wondering if she had grown since last he saw her?

She was growing fast, Herrah would be proud...had she been there to see her, would she come to hate him for stripping ber mother from her?

The wyrm found himself frowning as his fond reminiscing spiralled down into darker truths, it was more likely then not the spiderling would grow to hate him, he could see it in her eyes with each passing day she visited to the pale palace.

It'd be a lie to say this didn't disappoint him, but did he not deserve nothing if not the child's ire? To balm his mistakes had he not robbed of her mother, and playmate, even if that playmate was an empty shell...?

In the midst of despair there was one light left, it came in the manifestation of the halfling, she was his offspring only to the point that she was a bargaining tool, a lure of sorts to sway the final sacrifice into his court when he could find non other fit to shoulder the burden of dreamer.

Her mother, Herrah the beast demanded her boon be accounted for upon her departure, even threatened Deepnest would tear Hallownest apart if he dared reneged on his promise, and failed to prepare the halfling to rule the rivaling kingdom in her stead.

A threat both queen and wyrm knew implausible, a bluff against a kingdom infinitely more powerful.

But she desperate in hopes he would stay true to his promise, her plea guised in the shape of a fearless and aggressive threat, he could easily sense the fear underlying her shell, but fear of what, was the question that intrigued the god to no end.

The spider queen, showed little fear of death, the prospect of an eternity of sleep stirred the steely bug little compared to the other dreamers,  
She had seen his weakness, he had bared them plain for her to see,  
He needed her and she demanded a child of him.

As unsavoury as the request was, He eventually obliged with affirmation of his root, and while the idea of having another child atop all the bodies of their discarded offspring repulsed the king to no end, he wouldn't deny the lively and bright child they made was wondrous.

Part of him secretly never regretted sireing the child despite how unfortunate his and the beast's union was.

He often wondered what the pure vessel would have thought of the child had they not been empty, would they have found her annoying?

Perhaps they would have been a jealous child, would they quarrel childishly amongst each other?

No, something tells him they would have adored her, they would be very patient and watchful of the rambunctious child.

Memories of the vessel guarding the child par his command, made his incomplete heart wretch under this pale carapace, despite the size difference, it was shocking how strong his genes past on through the his two offspring, their masks similar in a why only siblings were allowed to resemble each other, they would have made the perfect royal family.

But that would never be, and nothing in his age old power could change that.

Why did existence demand so much in exchange for life?

Particularly with higher beings, Why bestow upon them gifts, if the price so steeply outweighed it's benefit?

The mere comparison of all he had given up, sacrificed, and lost in the battle for his people, for Hallownest heavily outweighed it's benefit.

That foolish tyrant light, she had been so bloodthirsty for reverence, much like that foolish wyrm, she'd have destroyed everything rather then lie down and die, victorious as he, was he not revered?

And yet still, he sat in his empty palace, despairing alone, without queen, heir or heiress, the gaping hole in his chest consuming him more and more as the days swept by..

Had he known the costs of his loyalty, the wyrm would have fled this cursed land long before he shed his godhood's primal husk.

But he hadn't and Hallownest leeched him of everything he had to offer and more, was his sacrifices punishment for his ignorance?

The god of knowledge and enlightenment forced to suffer through his all too mortal blunders of arrogance..?

The sound of the study door briskly closing caused the wyrm to almost jump out of his shell, almost falling off the work table he had perched himself on, head whipping around preparing to defend himself against the void constructs if need be.

Only to find the gendered child staring blankly at him, her head tilted on mild confusing as the wyrm scrambled to right himself, it was only the child after all!

He was so relieved by her presence, he forgot to even consider that he had explicitly ordered the moulds not to let any trespassers though without his orders.

"Your.. early"  
The wyrm greeted, peeved at his own foolishness, desperately trying to push past his embarrassing display, the gendered child in turn, hovered in place, watched his movements through tired eyes.

"Evening, Im late actually wyrm, queen vespa demanded I rest longer.." 

The pale king nodded, as he pulled out a stool for the spiderling, the late hive queen had been right, the child looked exhausted, she wouldn't start training for another three years or so, the wyrm wondered what had the small child spent so,was the hive really that busy?

"Why, hm, I guess you are, where has time gone..." The king mumbled to himself as he side eyed the sundial, to which his daughter shrugged broodingly.

She was very silent, whatever transpired before she left the hive had left the little heiress in somewhat of a funk, the wrym wasn't sure how to inquire about the situation so he did what cowards do.

He feigned obliviousness.

He also noted the shiny charm still affixed to the cowl of her shawl, the have blood charm, passed down from countless generations of queens to their successors, did she plan to crown the child as princess of the hive?!

Over his dead body, he'd much sooner have her rule Hallownest as his rightful air, not some tomb full of rancid honey!

He would have a talk with this queen vespa, one could not just call dibs on a successor, he made a promise the Herrah and intended to see it through, honey bees be damned!

Realizing his mental tirade, the pale king swallowed his ire, clearing his throat to which he caught his child's attention.

"Lets start with historic landmarks and ancient architecture from old Hallownest, shell we?"

He announced, watching as the glazed eyes of his child instantly brightened with interest, ah there she was, he always knew the child was intrigued by archaeology.

But even then, as he lectured the child on the importance of why the tram proposal for royal waterways was scrapped, he noticed her gaze had drifted off again.. becoming distant and troubled.

The way her small hands clenched and twisted at the fabric of her scarlet red shawl, worried the wyrm, the confused and vacant look in her eyes alluded to the child's troubles, it was what finally shattered the king's resolve, moving the wyrm to address the child's distress.

With a sigh the pale king, resigned himself to ending the lecture early, as it seemed the day had other plans for him and halfling...


	2. Dreams, Lies and Secrets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She would never be able to rule her underground kingdom safely without threat of bringing destruction upon it...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More self indulgent ignorant wyrm angst.  
> Some revelations.
> 
> Im giving up on trying to cap the chapters of PO it ends when it does i guess D8 sorry it became to overwhelming trying to cram it all in 1 chapter..
> 
> Hopefully i can get back in the swing 8T

The moment the words left her mouth, the wyrm felt a jolt of uneasiness creep under his shell, there was only three logical explanations to the spiderling's plight, first of which could have been simply but a harmless dream, conjured up by the stress of the past sealing of her mother.

The later two of which would have meant a prelude to something much worse, but in lieu of recent events the Wyrm found himself praying it indeed was the presence of the nightmare king slinking around the shadows of hallownest.

The god's presence was a bad oman onto itself, but even then the pale king would gladly have welcomed the fiend into his palace, so long as his child wasn't implying what it truly sounded like she was...

"A dream you say? Perhaps it was just a nightmare, do you still fear dreams even after you leave them behind to wake? tell me what happened in this dream?"

The wyrm pried calmly, he needed to confirm this was just a simple dream...

Slowly he attempted to sooth the spiderling, pale claws stroked his child's shell comfortingly, it was soft, and wouldn't harden fully for the next few of her molts, however his question seemed to ignite more trimmers within the child, what could have terrified her so?

"He was so scared, the chains they crumbled...s-she killed them, dead all dead! She consumed them, everything! She consumes all"

The small spiderling shrieked, her soft voice pitching in volume as her distress begin to simmer over.

He?...

The king's tilted slightly in confusion as he paused hesitating before pushing the charts and tablets aside to to place the gendered child on the table.

Her small frame shuttered like a twig yet tears did not shed her black eyes, so frail was she, sometimes the king hardly believed he sired her.

Her shell was so fragile, much like his, a stark contrast to his the void creations who's carapaces spined over in jagged sharp edges, or smooth steely shells.

Even the Pure vessel had shed into a impressive leathery shell, if he could even call it a shell, she had not the arcane runes swirled across the expanse of the vessel's body, seemingly engraved into their flesh much like they had his current and previous body.

These runes...they were the scars of a god, all higher beings had them, uniquely to their host, he was startled to find their presence on the vessel's shell, their carapace was almost impenetrable by the time they were at their twenty second shed.

But the gendered child was different, she a would never survive the bite of a saw, or possess the power of soul, her silky smooth shell was not marred by the scars that cursed his ranks.

He couldn't have fathomed that foolish beast knew of what despair she could have wrought upon her heiress requesting he sire her!

But no, godhood had over looked her seemingly, just as his foresight had predicted so, she would not be a beacon like he once was, she was spared, she was perfect.

The pale king was gripped by the overpowering feeling of awe as  
He silently marvelled at how she was warm, bright and alive with life and emotions, her temperature ran drastically higher then most bugs but such things were to be expected from hybrids, she was the polar opposite of the vessel, they were cold and unyielding, blank and...dead.

And she? She was warm and loud, unpredictable and chaotic she was alive, a modesty he never allowed his eldest child.

The moment tears breached her dark eyes, He found himself moving without aid of his mind dictating him to do so, wrapping his arms around the small child and holding her shivering body tightly, the parental need to protect her overwhelming, while his mind wared over itself.

It was never a luxury he was allowed with his previous child, why dare he know? 

Was he even allowed to hold her after the countless years he had spent neglecting his first child?

Would they have even wanted to be loved by the one who had forced such a heavy burden upon them before even birth? Parents who hollowed out their children to use them as mindless husks, Would they care at all...?

Guilt chewed through his chest like the seething parasites rumored to roam Deepnest's shadows, but the wyrm swallowed it, the child needed him he could not spare his mind to guilt.

"What ills you my child? Are you not well? why has this nightmare shaken you so?"

The small spiderling buried her face into his robes, her tiny claws clinging in as if her life depended on it, inturn he hugged the child tighter, stifling the repulsion he felt for himself, had the child not begin speaking again he surly would spiraled into another internal self loathing tirade.

"You don't understand, I felt it! they died, he's dying!" 

The king noted her usage of pronouns again, and with it came confusion was she referring to the watcher?

No, of course not, she had hardly met Lurian, there was no doubt she spoke of the genderless vessel, it was the only creature she bonded to during her stay in the palace, despite how despondent the vessel was...

But such traits were stripped from the void creature, such as voice and emotion what had given her the idea that..?

Nothing was adding up, perhaps it was a title she had given them as a child.

The pale king dismissed that line of thought, he could deliberate their child's bond with the vessel later, right now something was wrong, the more she spoke the more it seemed as if the nightmare god had invoked night terrors in the child.

A affliction he needed to fix as soon as possible, in the moment the wyrm the decided to look for himself, he would breach and scour his own child's mind, it wasn't something he would do on a whim, but if the nightmare god's influence was really upon her it would only get worse, it wasn't something to be taken lightly.

But it would also prove to her and himself it was all just a nightmare, yes that would clear things up.

Despite his resolve the wyrm felt a foreboding feeling, heavy on his shoulders and thick in the air of the room.

The thought of the vessel failing was a terrifying one, even if the king convinced himself and the rest of Hallownest of the vessel's purity, when he thought of the hollow shell that was once his child dying...it was- No! 

The pure vessel would not fail and the faster he would accept that the easier life would become...

The king felt his heart steel, his emotions exhausted and running dry, this would not fail. It could not fail...

"Fear not child it was but a dream! the vessel is far more powerful then you can imagine, he- It cannot die, as it was never alive to begin with... but a shell inhibited by soul and void, now come... look at me"

Quickly the king steeled himself, lifting his child's face to meet his, as his locked eyes with the spiderling, once they were fixed on his the spiderling could not look away, snared in his mental web as his mind reached out easily, slipping past her mind's barriers.

But the moment he breached her mind, he was met with a violent startling revelation, it manifested in the form of a seal, a powerful brand barring the the king from breaching further into the spiderling's mind, it flared bright with white fury, painfully banishing the wyrm from the child's mind.

The god's eyes widened with shock, as what had just happened registered in the wyrm's mind, the essences of the seal was his own, or at least identical enough that there was no doubt it was of his kin, the complex incantations engraved within the aggressive seal matched that of the vessel...

But if they were capable of such strong magic, why hadn't he known, what would have provoked the vessel to place a seal on the gendered child...Why..?

They would have had to have reasons to do so, it was no easy spell, nor did it cost little soul to instill, a seal of such force would have been painful to the bearer to receive...why hadn't the spiderling alerted him of such?

Unless she knew all along what they were capable of...

She knew they possibly weren't-..

For a moment everything paused as horror gripped the pale, it felt like a hole was being torn into his chest, and a flurry of doubts being forced into the empty void, the sound of cold laughing echoed through his thoughts as he desperately tried to cling to his denial.

He needed to know, if his visions were all false, had they led him to see what he desperately wanted, instead of the truth? Was everything he sacrificed was for naught..

Quickly the king grabbed the child's face, peering through her glassy eyes his consciousness reaching into her mind, his eyes narrowing with effort as he fought against the seal, it was like trying to breach the mind of another god, but unlike the vessel the pale king had lived eons, upon eons and with that age came power.

It wasn't long before the seal buckled, the symbol of his first heir sputtering and crackling before with little warning it gave way, fizzling out and shattering in onto itself.

Unprepared for sudden shattering of the seal, the Wyrm had little time to reel back from the child's mind, before he was pulled into the mental keep that was the spiderling's memories, his consciousness falling deeper as if the floor had shattered beneath the god's claws.

Memories and fantasies blurred together, with an array of bright colors many of which were surprising, for a creature that lived a life as dark as the inhabitants of Deepnest, light was a rarity among their caste, at least that's what the king always assumed.

Images flashed across the child's mind, and the kings eyes as words and sounds melded together, Webbing lined warm tunnels, dark rooms sparsely lit with fire instead of lumaflys, shadows crept along the walls, a large underground chasm of darkness, eight massive eyes that stared back at the child, the eyes of a long forgotten god, a monstrous beast of many legs, which seemed to stretch on for a lifetime, Herrah holding the spiderling, safe and protected within her arms, as she sang a lullaby, but the song was mournful and full of pain, then she was falling, wind whipping past her so fast it stole the tears from the spiderling's eyes.

Metal thorns reached up towards the falling spiderling, thorns the wyrm himself recognized as the barriers that protected the palace from the public...

Then everything was black and cold, Harrah was crying, her tears staining the spiderling's small cloak as she held the child tightly, curled in on herself, the queen laid with her child clinging to her in a pitiful state the wyrm had never witness nor thought the proud queen capable of.

Then he felt what was left of his heart stop as the pure vessel manifested before him, their movements jerky and agitated, the way their head was tilted, they paced a moment, then they were kneeling before the spiderling, they shook her and as words witout sounds filled her mind, words.. warnings..FEARS!

Then there were feathers, blinding and white, orange clots of pus clung to the crossroad, festering corpses and husks patrolled the rain sleek streets, the dreamer's masks obliterated along with the seal, leaving the black egg agape.

The Wyrm felt the breath leave his lungs, as with his very own eyes he witnessed what had remained of Hallownest's protector.

what was left of the of the vessel's corpse swayed in the empty tomb, infection seeping from its torn and boil covered shell, its arm and entire left side of it's body having given way and deteriorated under the ravenous affliction, unable to withstand the weight of gravity, the flesh and obsidian shell had torn away, leaving the creature to hang suspended by a single chain connected to it's right pauldron.

To his utter horror, their head rose, bright searing light filled its bulging and weeping eyes, they matched his, and in that moment he could feel his child's plea more clearer then if they spoke it with the voice he stripped them of.

Mercy...

They desperately pled for death, a pardon from the eternal ordeal he had forced upon them the moment they were foolish enough to crawl from the abyss and into his waiting arms.

Everything faded into the sun as a gut curdling laughter filled the empty void, cruel and cold, as a shower of large white feathers rained down around the dying warrior.

No...

He had seen enough, his mind numb and exhausted, there was too many truths, revelations that were so obvious one would have to have been a fool to not see them..he was a fool, to believe he could pass off his burden onto someone else and expect it not to have its reprocautions.

How could he have been so blind?  
As to not see the obvious, many times he suspected the vessels impurity but he had ignored these suspicions, why? Was it because he was afraid it would be too late to start over, raise another empty creature to its prime to cage and forget?

Or was he afraid of the implications it would mean if they in true were not hollow, the truth behind their creation, the guilt of all their siblings left to die in that depthless grave, did they secretly hate him, what had they thought of him all this time?

Did they understand why things had to be that way?, would they ever know he still loved them?

And the child...

There was no doubt, this... it was the power of foresight, which meant she had not been spared his curse, whatever traits she had gleaned from him it ran deeper then her pale face.

This was very troubling, she would be a beacon for countless ruthless and savage creatures, many that wouldn't hesitate to claim the flesh of a weak god and inturn ascend to godhood.

She would never be able to rule her underground kingdom safely without threat of bringing destruction upon it...

No, he would seal it, hide this fault in her genetics, conceal the poison he inadvertently had gifted her and prey it never rears its head.

At best she would live life as a mortal, with the exception of age she would live to see many millinias much like he had, longevity was a wyrm's strongest trait.

Without second guesses himself the pale king set to work on wiping the child's mind, then he moved on to her gift of sight, he sealed it, binding it with the strongest seal his magic could create, no god would be able to breach it.

It would never be found, this was all he could do for her, his silent apology for what loss and pain his blunders could, and would bring his last child, a desperate gift of sorts.

Finally he let go of her face, emotionally drained, the urge to vomit burning its way up his thorax, he looked down at his child, dazed, weak, she was so small, unaware of the dark future she was destined for, and silently apologised.

What could he have done to fix this?

He watched his last child gazed around confusedly as the residual haze of the thrall he had weaved over the young spiderling finally dissipated.

The pale god felt his heart sink as his halfling child looked up at with bright questioning eyes, eyes that seemed far to similar to their older sibling..

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Only child Hornet refered to the PV as a "HE" because the voice a heard while distorted was masculine. 
> 
> Because i head canon they would have been male had it not been what it was.  
> Other then the that, the same gender ambiguity applies


	3. The Price of Eternity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> " Vessel I Command you to cease!" The wyrm screamed, before the vessel abruptly turned to him, and for a moment he saw it, despair yet resolve.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hah! this was hard! Replaying the game really stoked my drive uwu
> 
> Pardon my confusing writting it ften gets hectic, ask if you dont understand something!

There was a moment of complete utter silence, usually the amount of quiet was to be expected when one was in such close proximity to void.

Instead of a thin calm, there was a weight to the atmosphere, a heavy and commanding smog, it pressed into the wyrm's carapace, threatening to crush the tiny god as he descended down the black halls.  
It felt like an unseen force was pushing against him, willing him to stay away, was it a ward or really just the manifestation of his own apprehension and guilt?

With every few steps a bright seal of his own incantations sparked to life, illuminating the shadowy hall, all too soon a metal bunch came into view, the elegant features of its expertly woven steel framework was almost invisible in the shadows dark enough to rival it's black bars.

The wyrm stopped, hesitating beside the bench stationed outside the dark chamber, his chest heaving, bile threatening to escape his stomach again, as anxiety drowned the god.

Was this really a wise decision?

The wyrm had little time to deliberate a logical course of action beyond confronting and removing them from the prison as fast as possible, he had to get them out, even if it meant freeing that dreaded light...

He..he would not leave them like he had the others.

Surely his child was right, but was this but a possible outcome, would his actions derail this forthcoming disaster, or would his reckless tampering ensure it was set in stone...?

For the first time in centuries of life the god questioned if the strings of fate could be derailed, altered into a more favourable outcome, it was a concept foreign to him, but a hope he grasped nonetheless.

He was blind, He could no longer trust his gifted sight for it had deceived him time and again, it was as if the radiance had blinded the god herself, what was he to do? 

There were so many mistakes he could make, so many he already had, was it too late to fix things?

No, he had to at least try!

Steeling his resolve the pale king entered the dark chamber of the Black egg, half expecting to witness what he had in the halfling's mind, and yet he was relieved to see the chamber absent of pus filled cysts.

In the center of the room, the vessel hung still, suspended by their pauldrons, both curled arms still present, they looked almost the same as he had left them months, save for the rigid posture in which they held their body, and ominous dim yellow glow that flickered behind their eyes holes, proof of their burden. The wyrm was so relieved, however in his brisk onceover he completely overlooked the tell tale signs of duress, the wym saw not the start of hairline fractures within their mask.

They did not acknowledge his approach, instead they hung motionless, mask facing downward at nothing in particular, fixed on an empty spot below them near where their nail rested.

He couldn't tell if they were sleeping without eyes nor true face, but despite their stillness, the pale king suspected that the vessel was very well awake, and aware of his presence.

For a moment he stared up at the vessel from the corner of the room, 

Watching the creature that he knew was once his child, that could be in truth still his child, a godly manifestation of wyrm and root precured into a beautiful specimen only to be tarnished and distorted by their foolishness.

He should have known, the moment they crawled from the abyss, the way their sharp empty eyes trained in on him, like a beacon.

No, not the vacant gaze of an empty husk but the apprehensive gaze a grub gives it's parent, silently begging to be kept safe and accounted for...to be loved.

They looked almost peaceful, so complacent in their prison, the king wondered what they were thinking about, were they in pain? Was she scorching them from the inside out?

What she would no doubt eventually do to them..

The wyrm felt his head tilt, his eyes narrowing with anger, and suddenly he was gripped by a hypocritical rush of fury, as he gazed upon the creature that should have been his heir.

Why? Why didn't they stop him, say something to stop him from making such a folly, he didn't understand, why would they let him do this?!

The spectres of the gendered child's memory haunted the king every waking moment since he bore witness to them, the sweet and sickening smell of rotting shell and flesh often flooding his senses making the wyrm nauseous and repulsed.

The urge to just run away from it all was beyond tempting, shirk responsibility and escape the walls that were closing in around him, let the stones fall and start anew.. 

But to leave all those who suffered and died at the hands of his feud with his nemesis, those who stood by him and sacrificed their lives in his image, they who lived and died under his rule, to abandon his mate? His children's sacrifice..those he loved?

No...He would fix this, even if he died trying.

There was no cost to great, the ancient god had learned this lesson in the hardest of ways.

"Vessel, I demand your attention...look to me my knight"

Primary Hands hooked together while he clasped his secondary set comfortingly behind his back, hidden within the white fabric of his cloak, he did not want the vessel to pick up on his unease when he was about to confront them.

The vessel in question was in truth not sleeping, after a long moment's delay, just as the king started to suspect they were indeed impossibly dreaming, the knight's head turned to the wyrm.

Worry itched its way into the king's spine, the wyrm had noted the vessel's movements were sluggish and heavy he didn't know what it could mean, but they were lucid, their empty gaze drawn to him with apt attention, not in question but blankly awaiting command.

What commands could you possibly fulfil like this? You foolish child...

The king thought as he stared up at the bound vessel before him.

Stepping forward until he was in front of the vessel, as close as he could be with them suspended from the chamber's ceiling as they were, the pale wyrm raised a single white claw, tracing it through the air slowly, as he did the tip of his claw bites into reality, cleaving pale glowing tears of residual soul through reality, the incantations he scripts out is that of his own, then he scours out the white lady's.. And then the vessel, all the while he studies his child's mask as if it'll give him some insight into their psych as they begin to process what he's telling them.

It does not, the vessel follows his hand expectantly with not a indication of understanding, he would never even suspect they comprehend what the Sigels meant had he not taught them their meanings himself, but he had also seen the knight break their facade, the memory of it's jerky moments that mirrored his own panic rests heavily in his mind, so he tries again.

"I trust you recognise our symbols my knight, they represent the royal we..I would have included the gendered child's but she hasn't matured enough to show signs of her godhood thus her signatures are still a mystery to us..The gendered child, she has been blessed with sight, but you knew that already didn't you?" 

It's not so much of an answer as it is an accusation, the king's patience is wearing thin, the Knight's indifference was beginning to anger the god.

The wyrm's eyes narrowed into slits as he scrutinized his child, seeking any tell-tale signs, anything to show that they heard him, but they did not stir, it was like staring into a fountain statue that stared back.

He was getting nowhere, panic settling in, as he stared back at the being dropping all pretense.

"My pure vessel... you were never hollow were you? Not from the moment you crawled up from the abyss, to the minute we forced the godheart within you...did you deceive me on purpose? Has the void consumed your mind so much that your will is not your own? Please tell me my knight, for my actions may have doomed us all!" 

In that moment he saw it, it wasn't a grand display, it wasn't even on their mask, it was their rendered empty right hand, the one they often held their nail, it was...not only clinched but quivering ever so slightly, almost completely hidden beneath armour, the pale wyrm's pulse roared as anxiety griped him, making his next words come out unintentionally rushed. 

"Answer me now vessel! Why did you seal the gen- your sibling's mind from us?! Why didn't you tell us of your impurity?!" 

The pale wyrm hissed quickly through clinched mandibles, yet he was still met with frustrating silence, the vessel seemed content to play it's games, but the pale wyrm had seen all he needed to, quickly he whipped around stalking to the corner of the room with purpose.

" Your silence won't deceive me twice vessel, you will fail if you try to keep fighting her, I will not have another senseless death on my conscience..I-I have seen your future...foolish child, you are not strong nor pure enough to hold the dawn at bay...I don't think anyone is pure enough.."

With that the pale wyrm withdrew a long pure blade from hidden within the folds of his robe, it's jagged ornamental edges glinted despite the imposing darkness of the room, he could feel the vessel attention shift swiftly from him to the blade, he could almost feel their apprehension building.

They...must have thought he was there to punish them, their whole being had started to tremble, in what looked to be fear, any ire the wyrm felt for their child in that moment dissipated, did they fear him?

Were they so afraid of what the truth might impose upon them that they stood passive whilst he mistook their complacency as emptiness and placed the burden of Hallownest upon their shoulders? So foolish, what a mess this all was! 

Shame burned within the wyrm's shell, he stepped forward, bringing him close to the iron chains suspending not only the vessel but the seal imprisoning them, part of him felt the need to reassure the vessel, to what? Placate?, comfort? reassure them that he would fix this? He wasn't even sure how or even what to say! could the pure vessel even understand anything past complex demands and orders?

Without a thought of hesitation he struck the thick chain with the blade, it sputtered and crackled beneath it, buckling until finally the metal and seal gave away under the pale ore, shattering into little more than dust, it was one of six.

He glanced up at his knight, noting that the quivering had stopped, to his surprise the vessel was staring at him, not that it didn't do this often, but this time it was different, it's unwavering stare was focused, it could almost be described as closer to leering, it was a familiar feeling, one he got when the kingsmoulds would linger to close, but never from his vessel, had their offspring's eyes not been robbed from them they would have had an intimidating stare indeed..

It sent it a shiver up his neck plates and he had no clue why, the heaviness of the room was stifling, the void threatening to crush and consume all that could not resist it's hunger, the sooner he could retrieve the vessel the sooner he could get out of this wyrm forsaken place, radiance be damned!

Quickly he struck the next chain, it burst under the force behind the blade, he could feel the seal weakening as he turned to hurry to another chain yet found himself halted, to the wyrm of all the things to distract him it was the least he would have expected.

A small noise...a sound that originated from none other than the only other being present, the Pure Vessel.

It was strained hissing, gurgling noise, as if a bug sought to hiss with a thorax full of venom, with lungs they didn't have, the noise itself was otherworldly and guttural, it would no doubt invoke fear in any bug unfortunate enough to be the one it was directed, but while the king froze it was not in fear but heart broken awe, as distorted as it was..the noise was still very much a wyrm's warning call.

So many years they stood at his beck and call, silent as a shadow, they never uttered a sound not even when they yielded to the bite of nail or saw, so ignorant he was to assume they weren't capable of such a feat...were all his ideals and beliefs on void so inaccurate and farfetched that he hardly knew anything of the beings he so foolishly created and disposed of at his leisure?

Guilt gripped the pale wyrm as his mask rose up to gaze upon his progeny, only to be met their passive leer, he could read nothing from their face alone, only the continuous warning, a warning directed at him, was the vessel angry at him?, the wyrm hadn't a clue honestly and that more than anything unsettled him.

Glimpses of the gendered child's dreams echo through the wyrm's mind fluttering at the edges of his consciousness like a foreboding nightmare, he needed to free them..he would deal with the ves- His child's ire when it's over and they are safely parted from the tyrant light's heart. 

But as soon as the wyrm moved to step towards the fourth chain reaching out to shatter the charmed metal, he quickly had to throw himself of out harm's way as a large white nail erupted from beneath the stone, tearing through the floor in which the wyrm had been standing seconds prior, shock gripped the wyrm.

No doubt it was the hollow knight's doing, he knew this because he had taught the vessel the spell himself, back when their face was still round with adolescence and their height no taller than his thorax, as soon as he discovered them still capable of harnessing soul, he taught them a wide array of spells, lest they find themselves without nail yet still faced with battle.

Never had he imagined they would use the spell in an attempt to maim him, had the Radiance seized control over their mind? Or did they really loathe him so and had finally relent their facade of complacency? He wasn't sure which fate he deserved more.

He didn't realize he stood there frozen, staring up at what was once his child and to his surprise and horror may still have been, the vessel had stopped it's silent hissing, yet it still leered down him, as if it was silently challenging him, much to his confusion, he did not seek to fight his own child!

Were they confused, did they think they would win a real battle against him? Even unbound it would be an impossible feat, to challenge a god as ancient and powerful as he, he was certain the vessel knew such truths.

Yet still the foolish creature would not allow him to approach close enough to release it from its binds, each attempt the wyrm made was met with hostile spell after spell, yet the wyrm would not be deterred, it wasn't until the king was certain he had completely wasted the vessel's soul stores that he approached them in earnest.

"Vessel, what in the name of Hallownest has possessed you? Has the old light stripped reasoning from your being? Know you are unfit for this burden, there is no fear of punishment as none awaits you beyond these walls, I demand you cease your interference!" The king hissed, hating the confused panic seeping into his voice, for once he hesitated not with thought of himself but for the Vessel.. would he have to fight the vessel once it was freed from its confines? Would his child turn to attack him when given the chance?. How would he respond if it chose to..?

They would find out soon, because the wyrm had no plans to allow his offspring to meet their demise at the claws of that tyrannical wrench! 

Determinedly he darted across the room, blade out stretch and struck the chain with all the force he could, but the chain did but break, instead a seal sparked to life, one the wyrm hadn't put there himself, the moment his blade licked the seal it shattered explosively, the wyrm was thrown back with a powerful force no halfing should be capable of, his body striking the wall with an audible crack.

The taste of blood filled his mouth and his mandibles twitched in agony as he slid down the wall, his twitching wing felt broken or at least dislocated, he could feel the void dancing tightly over his shell, seeking weakness to exploit and consume, slowly he rose himself, his body hurt, but for a god has old as he, there was always much worse, he would survive but it doesn't mean he was stunned.

If it were another god, or bug even he would have torn their minds apart within seconds of their folly, but this was his offspring, the only possible heir to the pale throne when he ascended his mortal shell, this was his child acting out against him for reasons that weren't clear.

He gazes upon his white robes to find them stained blue with blood, it glows obnoxiously in the dark room, causing the void to hover and coil away insidiously, that seal, tentatively he slides his claws over the wounds hidden beneath only to wince, it shattered his chest plates, they were bleeding profusely but for a god it wasn't something considered fatal, yet.. if he were a mere mortal bug it would be a different situation altogether...

It was neither spell or enchantment he had taught the vessel, it held not the essence of soul, and yet it was there, he wasn't even sure when the Vessel had placed it, or why..why was any of this transpiring, this this was madness!

All his delicately placed plans were crumbling so fast, the wyrm had little time to process why or even how to begin to fix anything, everything was caught in a spiraling vortex and if he fails to stop it all the sacrifices spent to balm the issue.. all of them would be for naught, he could not let that happen.

With a violent flick of his gossamer wings, and a breathe's worth of soul, the pale wyrm finds himself face to face with the pure vessel, the harsh glow of his being illuminating the dark room and glinting off their pale mask, he doesn't hesitate to grab each side of their mask albeit with slightly shaking hands, the knight does not fight him as his forces them to look into his eyes, they likely would have anyways, they've been trained to be complacent to the royal we all their lives, but with the events of the past hour.. he's not taking any chances.

"Vessel, you have drawn my blood, with a power I have not given you?

Are you frightened, do you seek revenge, or is here a method behind this madness? I come to relinquish the burden set upon you, understand that you are not fit for this title" he felt the night twitch ever so lightly within his grasp, it made his heart hammer within his thorax as he continued his plea.

"I know you are not hollow, and i know your capabilities, you communed with your..sister somehow, now please I beg you enlighten me, why do you hender this unavoidable outcome so vehemently?!"

They met his gaze with cold indifferent, this close he can see the hairline fracture webbing thr vessels left eye in particular, feel the heat being sucked from his body, as if he was standing next to the abyss itself, desperately he tries to breach the knight's mind, much like he had his daughter, but moment he felt his awareness slip through he was met with void, ravenously reaching for him, swallowing the light illuminated from his mere existence and much like his past attempts, there was nothing to be found there, he could not breach the walls of void that would no doubt consume anything that tried to pierce it's confines, but before he withdrew, a flicker of light caught the wyrm's attention, smothered in a thin layer of viscous void, was a feather Speckled gold and white, its unearthly glow cutting through even the void...

The sight of it made his stomach flip with apprehension, slowly he reached for the feather, the moment his claw touched the vane of it's tip, the feather shattered, bleeding orange evaporating particles..how close was the light to the surfacing through this sea of void..? The wyrm wondered.

Hairline fractures of light surrounded the king, it would be long, but not the forever he had previously hoped, this was a battle the hollow knight could not win... And yet he had placed them on the battlefield.

Suddenly the void around him the void around him became intolerant of his presence, twisting and coiling violently, reaching for the only life force there, him. Quickly he found himself forced out, banished from the knight's mind, had he seen something he wasn't supposed to?

Strangely enough somehow the king felt weaker, exhaustion nipped at his vision and his wings could hardly hold him, he wasn't quite sure why, but quickly noted the vessel had yanked it's mask from his claws to fixate on the wall, though he never saw the action, the mask holes of its eyes were alight with soul..it took the wyrm a moment to realize the hollow knight had just finished focusing, and it had been leeching soul from him! His soul stores greedily stripped dry.

Slowly the wyrm settled against the stone floor, his exhausted wings giving a final flutter before falling limp, staring up at the vessel with forlorn ire, what was it the vessel sought, had it planned to debuff his further attempts to free it, he could possibly subdue the vessel but only at the right of summoning its shade...

The king was weighing his option but then..then the wyrm felt something else, entirely it was a heavy feeling, yet silent, creeping and sharp..something was trying to breach his mind, he almost hadn't noticed, for a moment a quiver ran down his smooth carapace as he immediately recognised the presence of void, pressing in on him again, but the wyrm hesitated before instinctively casting it off light he had done just that many times that night.

It was then the Knight moved to look at him again, their eyes were aglow with soul, his stolen soul! part of him still couldn't believe it had done something so tactless, and to him no less! But he had bigger issues at hand, the pressure in his head was becoming unbearable, even by the standards of higher beings, for a second he almost considered closing his mind off to the prying force but desperacy kept him compliant.

The Knight was shaking again, much more violently then before and it took a moment for the king recognise this not of fear but exertion, the pure vessel was straining against what the wyrm wasn't sure, but he was certain now more then anything that the Knight was up to something that he, the king wasn't privy to.

Suddenly the pale king flinched as pain erupted within his head, his vision flashing as waves of agony coursed through him in waves, but then finally he was rewarded for his efforts, as he felt its presence.

Like any voices, hushed and chanting, they spoke, with anger, and resolve, yet these secrets are not audible to the wyrm, just whispers with no start nor tailend.

It was like the Pure Vessel was broadcasting its thoughts openly, a tangled web of words, and thoughts yet amongst the white noise he could hear a voice more prominent than the rest, hiding within the fray of words, it was cold and empty, but heartbreakingly soft in a way that he could only think possible of the white lady.

To his shock the voice was indeed as the gendered child had claimed, masculine, they would have been the pale prince, had they not been stripped of their title.

"Dawn will fall.."

The Whispers, they weren't in a dialect a bug from Hallownest would understand, but insistent words were in godspeak a language he never taught the vessel but supposedly came naturally to all higher beings.

"Rays will flicker.."

Realization was slow to come as the wyrm tried desperately to make sense of what his vessel was saying, but when a dreadful familiar seal sparked to life in the middle of the room, dawning horror started to seize the god, as he recognised what the spell was and what it was capable of doing to a god..even as strong as he.

"Light will fade.."

"VESSEL! Stop this at once! You are not strong enough to perform that!" 

The wyrm hissed as he stumbled to his feet, panic pulling him forward, he could not allow them to conjure it, it all made sense now, why they wanted his soul, they did not possess enough to cast it themselves!

" You will kill yoursel-..."

So foolish he was to not have seen this, did he ever expect them to survive his cause, was eternity trapped within the black egg even considered life? They had mourned the Hollow Knight as if they had already died, his root was still in mourning.

So why? Why now should he try to stop them? Why did it have to become so blatantly clear how wrong he was? When the binds of fate were already set in motion?

" Vessel I Command you to cease!" The wyrm screamed, before the vessel abruptly turned to him, and for a moment he saw it, despair yet resolve.

"Hallownest will last eternal..." 

It was the last whisper the wyrm heard before he was struck with shade soul.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PV: piss off!
> 
> PK: No this is madness let me free you at once!
> 
> PV: Screw you dad i know what im doing!
> 
> PK: D8<
> 
> PV: -uses shade soul-

**Author's Note:**

> I doodled out fan art for this chapter but ill post it with the last chapter.
> 
> Let me know what you think.


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